Greenville has reaped praise from all sorts of national media and organizations for transforming a nearly dead downtown into a vibrant gathering place.

But that rebirth has an underside. Fights, drunks on the street, rowdy behavior, the stuff of people out for a good time.

More serious problems have occurred in the past year or so. A promising Furman University graduate suffered serious head injuries after a beating, a young man in a bar was shot in the arm and, most recently, the fatal shooting by police of a young man who authorities said had been beating someone with a bat is being investigated by the State Law Enforcement Division, routine when an officer is involved.

In the stretch between College and Pendleton streets, essentially from the Hyatt to the baseball stadium, there are about 75 bars and restaurants. Most serve a full menu. Others, bar food, chicken wings and the like, with a heavy emphasis on beer, wine and liquor.

Keeping the crowds under control and Main Street safe is an everyday challenge for the police department. Barely a day passes that police don’t arrest someone for public drunk, disorderly conduct, nuisance conduct or open container.

Not too many days pass before someone from the Fire Marshal’s Office walks through bars, checking to be sure the owners are not packing in more people than the law allows.

Regularly, the Nightlife Task Force comprised of the fire chief, police chief and others walk through downtown, looking for wrongdoing, to be sure, but more importantly, making a statement that they are there. They meet to discuss new ways of keeping downtown safe.

(Page 2 of 5)

City Council members will on occasion go downtown just to see what’s going on.

“We have zero tolerance for (over) drinking,” said Wilfong.

A balancing act

Managing growth, particularly of restaurants and bars, is a tricky proposition. Too many bars and problems happen. Not enough and the crowds diminish.

Like it or not in a city that once proudly proclaimed itself to be the buckle on the Bible belt, serving alcohol is a necessity for a restaurant. Few don’t, and most often, those are sandwich shops such as Groucho’s and Jimmy John’s.

Amanda and Jay McAbee know it’s true. When they opened Grille 33 in a former sporting goods store on the north end of Main Street almost three years ago, they decided they wanted to make great hamburgers and not sell alcohol.

They had been operating The Channel on Orchard Park and had outgrown the 4,000-square-foot space. A non-profit, faith-based organization, The Channel is an alcohol-free venue that hosts musicians of every genre.

Once they moved to Main Street, they had 15,000 square feet. They started a restaurant on the ground floor and put the performance space above. A church meets there on Sundays.

The Channel remains alcohol free. The restaurant does not.

“The Channel gives college and high school kids a place to be,” Mrs. McAbee said.

But earlier this year, they decided they needed to serve beer and wine to bolster the restaurant’s business.

“We went so counter-culture people weren’t coming,” Jay McAbee said. Their customers — and others who had not tried the restaurant — told them they wanted to have a beer with their burger.

The McAbees compromised. The restaurant serves wine and high-end beers such as New Belgium and Hoegaarden, not cheaper beers such as Bud Lite or Coors Light. No liquor.

“If people want to party, they go someplace else,” Jay McAbee said. “There are so many options in Greenville if they want that.”

Amanda McAbee said servers watch for customers who have had too much and cut them off.

“If I saw people in here drunk, I’d have the feeling of what have we done?” Mrs. McAbee said.

(Page 3 of 5)

Enforcing the law

In the year that inspectors from the city codes department and Fire Marshal’s Office have aggressively patrolled downtown, they have issued numerous warnings and cited four businesses, said Fire Chief Stephen Kovalcik. Overcrowding is the most common violation. Each bar has a maximum capacity based on a formula established by the International Building Code.

Kovalcik said a bar owner can be cited even if the bar is under its capacity if people are congregating in one area.

“It creates a life safety issue,” he said.

Inspectors have found too much flammable material, carts blocking exits and exit doors bolted shut. They look to see if outside tables and chairs are in the walkway. Kovalcik considers it a matter of education, and some of the more egregious violations such as bolted exits no longer happen.

Similarly, Wilfong said her officers are not out to ruin anyone’s good time. They go to some lengths to find a non-confrontational drunk person a ride home or a friend to take him before making an arrest.

The central business district is patrolled by a lieutenant, two sergeants and 14 officers, Wilfong said. Besides Main Street, that area includes the Swamp Rabbit Trail and Falls Park.

In the past eight months, police arrested 51 people for public drunk, 30 for disorderly conduct, 21 for nuisance conduct and 21 for open container in the downtown area. People also have been arrested for possessing marijuana, assault and driving under the influence. One juvenile was arrested for having cigarettes. Three hit and run accidents were reported.

Most of the arrests were on the north end of Main Street and most were men.

Arresting people who are drunk has been debated across the country. In 34 states, being drunk in public is not a crime. People who are drunk are taken to treatment programs. Some communities have hired counselors. Others have sent police into bars and taken drunk people out. In the 1990s, a Louisiana judge let people off a public drunk charge if they agreed to go to church for a year.

(Page 4 of 5)

Maintaining the balance

Mayor Pro Tem David Sudduth said he thinks the city has kept downtown safe even as the number of establishments has increased. He wonders, though, whether downtown has reached a tipping point.

He said he has gone with police officers at 2 a.m. and watched the wave of people walking — sometimes staggering — through Piazza Bergamo to the Richardson Street garage.

“They’re sometimes intoxicated, fights erupt. It makes its way into the garage and people end up getting sick,” he said. “That’s the part of downtown that a lot of people don’t see.”

The plaza is where the largest number of arrests are made.

Businessman Hayne Hipp, whose office is in the Liberty Building on Main Street, agrees the city has reached the tipping point.

“The question is how do you do that delicately without killing the geese that are laying the golden eggs,” he said. “You do that by bringing more offices as opposed to restaurants and bars downtown.”

He thinks the city aggressively works to keep peace while allowing for fun.

Sudduth said among the changes in law City Council may consider is setting a limit on the number of bars within a given area much like the restriction on payday lenders that precludes them from congregating in one area.

That would also solve the problem of large spaces remaining unoccupied during the day.

“We need a critical mass downtown. We’re trying to attract businesses, office tenants and it’s important for them to attract customers,” he said.

The burden now, he said, falls on the police department, and council needs to ensure Wilfong has the resources to do the job. In recent years, the council has improved technology in cars, adding computer monitors, cameras, radar.

“It’s growing pains,” he said. “Our downtown is one of the safest places you can be, but it’s only safe because of the great work our police officers do.”

Owners want enforcement

Downtown restaurant and bar owners say putting a limit on the number of establishments is not the answer. Enforcement of state and federal laws regarding alcohol is the best way of ensuring the public safety.

(Page 5 of 5)

“It’s not the number of bars. It’s the caliber of bars,” said Scott Woods, owner of City Tavern.

Jeff Kauffmann, general manager of Corner Pocket, said he doesn’t think there are too many bars and restaurants. Keeping the peace simply requires attention. Regular ID checks, counting the people coming through the door, watching how much people are drinking. And making sure people do not leave with beer in hand.

He said dealing with rowdy customers requires a certain technique, a friendly yet firm response.

“We don’t want to throw you guys out, so squash it,” he said to a group that started bickering. He smiled. They stopped.

Servers have been cited for providing alcohol to people under age, customers for having fake IDs or consuming alcohol after hours.

At Guadalajara, owner Larry Rodriguez said he thinks downtown needs more restaurants and fewer bars. He said bars that offer cheap specials on beer create the most problems. One downtown bar offers 10 liquor drinks for $20.

Mary Nase, general manager at Mast General, said she has little interaction with downtown crowds because her store closes at 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. She said she sees young people streaming out of the parking garages as she’s leaving.

“I don’t know where that tipping point is but if we’re going to attract more retail, we need balance with bars,” she said.

When she arrives in the mornings, she finds trash and beer bottles in the alley behind the store. Other store owners have found vomit.

But overall, they say, the city solid waste division is thorough in making sure the streets are clean.

Hipp said once or twice a week he arrives as early as 6 a.m. and has noticed city crews cleaning.

“I do notice how aggressive and effective the city is in cleaning up Main Street. Every morning, whether it’s 6, 6:30 or 7 a.m., you see the work crews picking up, cleaning, etc. and doing it thoughtfully,” he said.

Kovalcik, the fire chief, said overall businesses are cooperative. One he declined to name doesn’t let the crowds get to capacity because servers cannot provide optimal service.

His staff gives those who violate code many chances to comply before a citation is written.

Four businesses have been cited. One paid a fine, another went to court and then paid a fine and the other two are pending, he said.

“Business owners want the same thing we do,” Kovalcik said. “It takes owners, police, fire and other codes folks to protect what’s been built here. We are protecting the ambiance.”